


Out Of Sync

by Lonersoforlorn



Category: Stargirl (TV 2020)
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-05
Updated: 2021-02-05
Packaged: 2021-03-16 18:13:27
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,925
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29211708
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lonersoforlorn/pseuds/Lonersoforlorn
Summary: Beth has always been out of sync.
Comments: 6
Kudos: 78





	Out Of Sync

Beth was used to waking up early and going straight into her routine that ended in a hearty breakfast made from scratch. Usually, she was the one who made it after taking over the role from her parents, who had exchanged full meals for cups of burnt coffee. Now, as Beth walks into the kitchen, she feels as if she’s traveled back in time. 

By the stove stands Beth’s mom, humming an old r&b song as she cooks what suspiciously smells like hash browns. The only thing missing in this blast from the past was her dad dancing beside her mom. Beth pinches her wrist, wondering if she was still asleep. As she lets out a small yelp, she realizes what she sees in front of her is, in fact, real.

“Mom?” Beth calls out, and her mom turns in her direction with a warm and loving smile.

“Hi, Beth.” She greets, and Beth’s eyes drift to the skillet in her mom’s hands. She was making hash browns, and they looked almost ready to be done. 

“Can I help?” Beth asks while bouncing around the kitchen gleefully. 

Her mom motions for her to calm down, then she gestures to the dining room where Beth sees an ensemble of plates on display. Beth frowns, wishing that she could’ve helped out in some way. 

“I was thinking of making hash browns done all the way. Would you like to help with that?” Her mom asks, lifting the skillet a little and showing the half-way done hash browns. 

Beth nods, spying a bowl of already sorted veggies on the table. She grabs the bowl and walks over to where her mother is. Her mother backs away from the skillet, then places a kiss on Beth’s temple, and lets Beth sprinkle the veggies onto the cooking hash browns. As Beth does so, she finds herself asking her mom questions involving the current change of routine. 

“I’ve missed you,” Her mom reveals, looking a little ashamed at the admittance. “I know I told you to go out and make friends, and I’m happy you’re doing so, but I miss our bonding time.”

Beth is quiet as an array of emotions slosh around in her head. She was happy her mother missed her but still was confused as to why she was pushed away in the first place. No, she wasn’t just confused. She was hurt too. All of her life, she and her family were like synced clocks always chiming at the right time. 

Then everything moved forward, and Beth was always hours behind. She couldn’t get back in sync no matter how hard she tried. As she ticked on her own, she only found herself longing back for the synchronicity of old. It had all changed the day she saw Stargirl and Wildcat climbing on the hospital walls. That was the start of Beth finding a rhythm in the unsynchronized ticking she had been left with. 

Her mother must pick up on all of her emotions because she lets out a sigh and says. “When you were growing up, your father and I promised we wouldn’t miss out on anything. We grew up in households where our parents worked long hours too, and we wanted you to know us. Not just the imprints you might see at the dinner table. But just before you started high school, I realized just how much of your own life your father and I let you miss. So I let you go, but I didn’t give you the proper instruction on how to fly. I’m sorry, Beth and I’m proud of you for making friends.”

“Thanks, mom,” Beth replies in an appreciative tone. She turns around, giving her mom a reassuring smile.

Beth’s mom returns the smile, but her eyebrows scrunch up as she waits for Beth to say more. Surprising Beth herself, for the first time in a long time, she was without words. Beth shifts back her focus on the hash browns, which were now a golden brown that indicated they were done. Her mom is prepared with a plate to empty the hash browns out on. Soon the plate is covered in their delicious collaboration, and Beth grabs the plate to put on the dining table with the other breakfast food ensembles her mom had made. 

They sit and eat between short intervals of casual conversation all stemming around Beth’s latest activities. Sans anything about her heroic activities as Doctor Mid-Nite and her life as a member of the JSA. After they eat, they clear off the table, and Beth’s mom informs her that they’re going for a drive. Beth is curious about where they’re going, so she asks, but her mom responds by telling her that it’s a surprise. 

The drive is long, way longer than anything Beth had prepared for, and they end up at a store where they can stretch their legs. As they walk around the store, somehow, they end up at a section full of different skates of various colors and sizes. Beth’s eyes widen as she sees a pretty pair of yellow and dark blue roller skates. A fleeting thought enters her mind about how it was such a shame it was not yet spring. She starts to walk past it when her mom grabs the box and tells her that she’ll buy it for her. 

Beth is elated, and she skips after her mother to the cash register to buy it. As they walk out of the store, Beth finds herself musing out loud on what a shame it was that she wouldn’t be able to use the skates any time soon. A mischievous expression crosses her mom’s face as she tells her that she might be using the skates sooner than she thinks. They go back to the car, and the drive continues. 

This half of the drive is full of sing-alongs to songs they only know half the words to. It comes to a stop when they reach their destination, and much to Beth’s surprise, it’s a roller rink. She looks over to her mom, who is wearing a satisfied grin at Beth’s surprise.

“How about we try out those new skates?” She asks, looking at the box of skates that sit on Beth’s lap.

Beth’s eyes sparkle at the idea, and she begins to open the box with enthusiasm. Her mom stops her, reminding her it’d be easier to try them on in the roller rink. They get out of the car but not before Beth’s mom grabs a gym bag from the back. As they walk, Beth forgets to stop herself from skipping ahead and ends up with quite a distance between her and her mom. She waits by the entrance, and when her mom nears, she opens the door. 

Inside the rink, the heat blasts make her take a step back. It was more intense than the heat blasting in the car. Her mom, however, moves forward unphased and makes her way to the front counter. As Beth waits, she observes the crowd, well lack of at the rink.

Most of the people there were senior citizens. A couple of people were around her age, and they stuck close to one another as they trapeze around the older crowd. Overall, there was a distinct pattern to it all. Everyone was totally in sync with one another, whether they realized it or not. 

Beth couldn’t wait to join in, especially when one of her favorite songs started playing on the speakers. Her mom walks over then tells Beth they should change into their skates. Beth rushes over to the closest seat and hastily puts on her roller skates. Before her mom even has a chance to sit, Beth is off to the rink’s entrance. 

Realizing she was alone, she looks back and smiles as her mom gestures for her to go ahead inside. Once inside the rink, Beth finds her own pace disrupting the distinct pattern she had observed earlier. She stuck out in the crowd. She could tell because the kids her age gave her brief side stares as she skates through the rink as if she’s the breath of the wind. 

On her second round around the rink, she sees her mom by the entrance waving her down. She stops, and her mom enters the rink. They skate side by side, but Beth always seems to be a little ahead of her until her mom does a trick. A trick that Beth only sees half-way, her attention lured from the sound of cheering coming from the teens.

Beth stops, her mouth hanging agape as her mom takes a humble bow. Her mom moves closer towards Beth and then laces their arms together. 

“How did you do that?” Beth asks her surprise, still not receding.

“Years of practice and running through the hospital halls aerobics.” She jokes. 

Beth laughs. “No, mom, I mean, when did you learn to do that? I didn’t even know you knew skating tricks.”

“Just some. My family and I used to skate together, and your grandpa was a stickler for the theatrics of skating.”

“You think grandpa can teach me?” 

Beth’s mom laughs hard in response. “I don’t think your grandpa would risk a hip replacement, but I’ll gladly teach you.”

Beth nods at the idea, full of enthusiasm. Her mom tries to teach her the trick, but it usually ends up in Beth falling flat out on her face. Even with all of her failures, Beth was having so much fun, so she didn’t expect a random pang of sadness to ripple through her body. 

“Mom?” Beth calls, her voice dropping in tone. 

“Yes?” Her mother responds with a concerned expression. Beth could tell she was this close to going full doctor mode with how her eyes were obviously scanning her for any injuries.

“Mom, I really thought I was a loser because that's what everyone told me I was. It was like everything I did and everything about who I am was a problem. I’m not a loser, Mom, but I really did feel like one because of how alone I felt.”

A regretful pained expression crosses Beth’s mom’s face. She brings Beth into a hug and kisses her temple as she pulls away. 

“I’ve tried to protect you for so long, and here I was, the one who caused you pain. I love you, and I never want you to feel that way ever again. I’m so sorry, Beth.” 

Beth once again accepts her mom’s apology, but this time there’s a weight she didn’t know was there lifted off her shoulders. Her mom promises to make some more time for her and to always be ready to listen even if she doesn’t fully understand the reasoning. Beth is grateful to hear that, and she promises to tell her mom more about her feelings, including just how much people in school affect her. 

Another song starts to play, a song that Beth only knew because her dad tended to sing it throughout the house on his days off. It was a perfect song to skate to and sate on the issues that you've just sorted out. Beth and her mom skate and laugh at jokes they haven’t told each other in a long time. For a second, it feels as if their back in sync as Beth intertwines her arms with her mom, but still, she’s somehow always a step behind. Even so, that was more than enough for her.


End file.
